Harry Potter and the Talisman of the Harbingers
by Thorber Stone
Summary: The battle is won, but the war is far from over. Voldemort goes into exile, and the wizarding world tries to pick up the pieces and rebuild. But even as Harry, Ron, and Hermione try to adjust to a normal life, sinister forces are at work, and the strength of the young trio will be tested again, sooner than they realize, as will the generation ahead of them...


**Author's Note:** _This has been drafted and redrafted multiple times, and has now become something completely different from what I started with. Mostly, I do hope you will enjoy yourselves and leave a review of your thoughts/criticisms and expectations. It's a work in progress, and it's a little flexible in content. Expect a lot of non-canon shippings and OCs intermixed with possible canon material._

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Harry Potter or anything related to it. If I did, why would I need to write about it in FanFiction?

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 **Chapter 1  
For The Future  
**

The night air was cool on the mountainside, even with the thick black fur that covered him from head to tail. Easily loping along an unmarked path that only animals could traverse, he made his way down into the village of Hogsmeade. One or two actual dogs barked and challenged him, but he was of such a size and a keen intelligence that even they recognized and knew to shy away from after a long hard stare. Free of other challengers, he moved on. It was roughly three in the morning, so there was virtually no one about. It was best this way; and the safest. He only wished it didn't have to be so soon. But knowing his godson, it was not going to be much longer before it was much too dangerous to be anywhere near England.

He found his way to her place, the woman who he befriended, the one person in literally all of England aside from a very select few, to believe that Sirius Black was not the notorious criminal everyone else largely thinks him to be. While Harry partook in the very dangerous Tri-Wizard Tournament, he and Buckbeak took refuge in the mountains just beyond Hogsmeade. She brought food, supplies and other things, such as copies of the Daily Prophet to him. They'd normally meet halfway, and on very rare occasions, he'd make his way into Hogsmeade itself, but she always scolded him when he did so, saying it was too dangerous and he was reckless, like a true Gryffindor. Their friendship eventually blossomed into something more, something Sirius could scarcely believe to be possible. As happy as she made him, and him her, tonight, all that was coming to an end.

Her home was a modest cozy cottage in a hilly region of the magical village, with a white picket fence bracketing the beautifully manicured lawn. The turfgrass was well tended, though little daisies popped up everywhere, with no discernible order, unlike the roses or snowdrops that she liked to nurture. She once told him that the little flowers deserved to be as they were because they were so brave to even sprout where they chose. He couldn't understand it, but it seemed endearing to him. Once he was at her doorstep, Sirius Black resumed his human form, now relatively safe from any curious eyes in the shadows of the cottage. He drew out his wand and softly incanted, " _Alohomora_." and noted with a mixed feeling that the door easily unlocked for him. She still didn't set up wards for her home, despite his constant urging to increase the security of her place.

Slinking inside, he didn't need long for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, and he could find his way through this place blinded if he were so inclined. Opening the door to her bedroom in the far corner of the home, he leaned against the threshold, arms folded, just taking a moment to watch her slumbering form, drinking in the sight, because he wasn't going to see it for a long time. She was lying on her side, facing away from him, and he watched her gentle breathing, when she suddenly stirred and looked around slowly, then she gasped loudly, "Sirius! What on earth...?!"

"'lo, Sofia," said Sirius, and he straightened up from his position by the threshold of the door, crossing the short distance to sit at the foot of her bed as she also sat up and folded her nightrobe around herself. He loved how she would still be so self-conscious and shy despite the intimacy they had shared for months now. He watched her in comfortable silence, committing to memory every aspect of her, which he could make out easily despite the darkness. He never wanted to forget.

"You're so stubborn," said Sofia, finally breaking the silence, and glaring at him evenly, "I've told you again and again, I'll come to you, we set up a system..."

"You need to leave," said Sirius, interrupting her, "tonight, right now."

"Where is this coming from?" said Sofia, then she shook her head, "You're the one who needs to leave..."

"Voldemort's back."

Sofia's lips opened and closed like a goldfish as she struggled to process the two words that took all the words out of her brain, at least by Sirius' guess. The man's name didn't bother him to utter. After all, he suffered for years in Azkaban, framed for a crime he didn't commit, all because of a mistaken belief that he was loyal to the dark lord, just like his insane relative, Bellatrix. The wizarding world drew its conclusions and threw him in bed with the Death Eaters. "It can't be..." said Sofia, trying not to accept. She swung her feet around to the other side of the bed so that she could move closer to him, taking him by the crook of his elbow, "Sirius, that is in poor taste."

He snorted derisively, "I wish it was a joke, but it isn't. Listen to me, Sofia, you must leave tonight. My godson, Harry...he told me what happened at the final trial for the tri-wizard tournament. There is no doubt. The bastard's back."

"But why do I need to leave?" asked Sofia, almost pleading, then she shifted her tone to a hopeful one, "Will you be coming with me?"

Sirius Black's reputation and the price on his head was significant enough that even America would hunt him down if they learnt of his presence there, but they could always keep a low profile. The wizard shook his head. "I can't leave Harry, not now..." he said. "...neither can you stay. It's going to be worse this time. And even though you're a Half-Blood, I'm not sure that's going to be sufficient protection. We talked about this eventuality."

She nodded mutely, "I just hoped you'd be wrong."

He smiled tenderly at the young woman. She was far younger than him, and far more optimistic, filled with far more hope and ideals. He reached up a hand to caress her cheek, leaning in to kiss her softly on the lips, and she leaned back into the kiss, adding force and passion. It was goodbye, and she wasn't going to argue with him. He never told her things like this unless he meant it, and he knew she knew that. "Can you get everything you need," he said as they drew apart from their kiss, "and be out of here before the sun rises?"

She nodded slowly, smiling wistfully, "Yes, yes I can. I'll go to..."

"No, don't...don't tell me." said Sirius, "If somehow I'm caught, if somehow they find out about you...the less I know, the better."

She looked at him sadly, but understood. He supposed she was silently cursing the fates for the situation surrounding them. But in far less time than he liked, she had shrunk most of her belongings and filled a tiny bag with an engorgement charm in it, and she stood at the door to the cottage, looking at him longingly. He kissed her one last time, and said, "Take a Muggle ship, like the way I showed you," she nodded at him, smiling wearily, "and for Merlin's sake, ward your place!"

She laughed softly, her voice like tinkling bells, and Sirius felt his desire for her growing, "Sirius, I _do_ ward them. I just have you included into the wards so you don't get repelled."

"Oh."

"Goodbye, Sirius," said Sofia, "you'll send me an owl when it's safe to come back?"

"You know I will. My name will be cleared, and we'll have the whole future ahead of us, and you can meet Harry. He's a great young man." Pride was evident in the man's face when he spoke about his godson.

"I know he is," said Sofia. "Don't be too reckless, Sirius."

She left the home and apparated away. After an hour, before the sun rose, A large black dog slipped out of the village and returned to the mountains.


End file.
